Undergraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2009-2010 (archived)
Module ARCH2121: ARCHAEOLOGICAL METHOD AND THEORY
Department: Archaeology
ARCH2121: ARCHAEOLOGICAL METHOD AND THEORY
| Type | Tied | Level | 2 | Credits | 20 | Availability | Available in 2009/10 | Module Cap | None. | Location | Durham |
|---|
| Tied to | F400 |
|---|---|
| Tied to | F402 |
| Tied to | LF64 |
| Tied to | LMV0 |
| Tied to | VF14 |
Prerequisites
- Introduction to Archaeology (ARCH1071) OR Scientific Methods in Archaeology (ARCH1041).
Corequisites
- None.
Excluded Combination of Modules
- None.
Aims
- To enable students to appreciate and analyse major debates about the nature of archaeology.
- To give students the opportunity to reflect on their Level 1 learning, and the skills they are developing.
- To give students an understanding of the way in which the present-day discipline of archaeology has come to exist.
- To provide students with the necessary theoretical background in archaeology.
Content
- The module will cover a range of general topics in archaeology both theoretical and practical.
- These will include: theoretical development in archaeology, from traditional and New Archaeology through to postprocessual and interpretative approaches.
- issues and debates in the study of artefacts, of sites and of landscapes.
- Students will also enumerate and reflect on the key skills they are developing across their course as a whole.
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge:
- By the end of the module, students will have: Explored in depth a range of ideas and debates that underpin the discipline of archaeology.
- Have reflected on the course as a whole, and the knowledge and skills they are gaining from it, at its half way point.
- Considered a range of methodological and theoretical issues relevant to the subject, principally through secondary literature.
Subject-specific Skills:
- Developing a broad range of core interpretive skills pertaining to archaeological analysis by undertaling a report on (a) artefacts, or (b) sites, or (c) landscapes.
Key Skills:
- Accessing library and WWW resources
- Undertaking independent study, reserach and problem solving
- Preparation and effective communication of research methods, data, and arguments in written and visual form.
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- Lectures will furnish core ideas, information and concepts.
- Seminars will facilitate more comprehensive discussion and debate.
- They will also produce a summatively assessed seminar write-up in which they engage in critical reflection upon a general debate within archaeology (on one of: artefacts, sites or landscapes).
- Students' knowledge of a range of ideas and debates and of methodological issues will be assessed in a short end-of-year unseen examination.
- Self guided learning.
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total/Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 19 | 1 Per Week | 1 Hour | 19 | |
| Seminars | 3 | Spread over 2 Terms | 2 Hours | 6 | ■ |
| Preparation and Reading | 175 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component: Seminar write-up | Component Weighting: 34% | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| 2000 word seminar write-up | 100% | ||
| Component: Unseen examination | Component Weighting: 66% | ||
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| unseen examination | 2 hours | 100% | |
Formative Assessment:
Preparation of an essay (c1,500 words); participation in seminar discussion.
■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University